June 11, 2014

A Beirut Transplant Comes to Griffintown: Chez Sophie Montreal

After the huge success in Beirut, Chez Sophie is now open in Griffintown, in the former Viva Galerie antique store.

The restaurant is not the first from chef Sophie Tabet and husband Marco Marangi, who serves as both manager and sommelier. The couple had a restaurant in Beirut with the same name from August 2010 to February 2013. Tabet's father, Chérif, and brother Samir were principals as well. On the shutter of the first Chez Sophie, Samir Tabet told a Beirut newspaper: "The place was too large relative to demand in the segment of a semi-gourmet restaurant. This is an opportunity for Sophie and Marco to explore Paris, Montreal and Asia for a year to renew their culinary curiosity." The orginal plan was to return to Beirut to re-open Chez Sophie but the Lebanese capital's loss is Montreal's gain, apparently. One Beirut blogger called the restaurant Lebanon's only Michelin star candidate and, upon learning of Tabet's departure, wrote: "I almost cried."